After several days of marching, Baron O'Brien's Munster army finally reached Dweid.

At this time, most of the southern princes had been pacified, except for the southernmost counties of Amanac and Carson, the other rebellious southern princes' territories were either captured by Marshal Rudolph, or were facing the front of the imperial army, and the vigorous rebellion of the southern princes came to an end in more than a month.

Because the overall situation had been decided, Alexander also urgently drew the spare troops from the counterinsurgency army and rushed to Germany. And because Pritown is the closest to the imperial capital, and it is also the rebel territory that was most thoroughly pacified by Marshal Rudolph, most of the troops stationed in Pritown were requisitioned by Alexander, although this will lead to the instability of Pritown in Xinping, but for Alexander, it doesn't matter what Pritown does, the most important thing is Deweide and his throne.

The Munster army was the first to be drawn from Pritown after Guderian ordered it. In this war, the Munster army led by Baron O'Brien made great contributions to the empire, and when the war ended, it was indispensable to add an official to the knighthood, and Baron O'Brien also because of his achievements in aiding Lanz Town and Lanz Town, his reputation has been greatly improved, and there is already a voice in the army that after Minister Guderian steps down, Baron O'Brien will be the most powerful candidate for the next Minister of War, and the O'Brien family will also become another top gate valve to climb the top of the imperial mountain after the Guderian family.

Therefore, although there was no further combat mission and meritorious service opportunity after the pacification of Pritown, Baron O'Brien did not care, it is impossible for a person to experience all the wonderful things in the world, and this period of repair can also give the Munster army, which has experienced several major battles, a chance to take a breather.

However, when the proud Baron O'Brien entered the imperial capital, the unusually cold atmosphere in the hot weather immediately sobered up the proud baron. The current imperial capital is not the imperial capital when he first led the army to support, the heads of both sides when the southern princes rebelled, Emperor Nicholas I and Prince Michel VII died in less than half a month, and the current virtue, because of the absence of the emperor's constraints and external pressure, has become a battlefield for Alexander and Beria to compete for the throne. Yes, on the battlefield, after leaving Konuet, the Munster army did not return to a stable rear, but embarked on a new, more thrilling battlefield.

In order not to provoke Beria, Guderian did not even dare to arrange a triumphal ceremony for Munster's army, and Baron O'Brien and his troops were directly stationed in the temporary barracks in the western suburbs after arriving in Dweide, and he was also strictly ordered by the War Department to never allow soldiers to enter the city.

This kind of treatment is indeed a bit chilling for the Munster soldiers who desperately defended the imperial capital on the battlefield of Lantztown, and Guderian did not fail to take this into account, he sent people to send a large number of supplies and rewards to the Munster army, trying his best to calm the morale of the army, and in order not to favor one over the other, even the Yanwan army also received these rewards, but compared to the Munster army, it was less.

At the cost of a lot of money, Guderian at least settled Munster's army first, but for Baron O'Brien, it didn't end there.

The day after his stationing, he welcomed an unexpected guest.

"Hello, Baron O'Brien. Swain stood straight in front of the baron, for he was in a barracks, where there were no wine or sofas, only a simple tent and two chairs for them to converse, "I had an opportunity to meet you, but unfortunately, I missed that opportunity. ”

Baron O'Brien was stunned for a moment, and it took him a long time to realize that Swain was referring to the fact that after the death of General Cecil, Nicholas I sent Swain and the Celestial Princess as a messenger for peace talks, and sent them medals when they passed through Lanztown.

"Ah-" Baron O'Brien opened his mouth, but couldn't think of anything to say for a moment, "it's a pleasure to meet you." ”

"Me too, it's my pleasure to meet you, your name has resounded throughout the empire since the Great War at Landstown, and now even the desert people of the Badajoz Peninsula know your name. Swain said flattering words, but his face always had an expression that didn't match what he said.

"No, I don't dare to take this honor, the victory of Lantz Town is the result of the joint efforts of all the soldiers, and the honor belongs to all the Imperial soldiers. Baron O'Brien hurriedly said humbly, although he was a little unhappy with Swain's expressionless face, but at least he could bear it, and there was one more thing he didn't dare to offend Swain - Swain came to comfort him on behalf of the eldest princess.

After all, he was born in a big family like O'Brien, and although he had the straightforward character of a soldier in his bones, this did not prevent Baron O'Brien from putting on the same as a nobleman when facing Swain. "Speaking of which, you are a worthy hero, and it is an amazing feat to protect Her Highness Catalina from Priston and kill Michel VII. True to the Jericho family, I was impressed by your father's calm and wisdom when I fought alongside him in Landestown, and now seeing you again makes both father and son truly heroes. ”

Baron O'Brien said, staring at Swain's face, but the plain face did not change at all, which made Baron O'Brien a little depressed, he didn't know if Swain was born like this, or if his fart slapped the horse's leg.

"Thank you for the compliment," replied Swain lightly, "but I would like to state that Viscount Ernest has long been stripped of his inheritance by my grandfather, and now I am the head of the Jericho family, and I have nothing to do with Viscount Ernest." ”

It looks like it's a slap on the horse's leg. Baron O'Brien felt bitter in his heart, and when he heard Swain's address to Viscount Jericho, he understood that the relationship between father and son must be very poor. So he decisively changed the subject, and stopped mentioning Jericho's matter: "May I ask you for something to come today? You said before that you are representing Her Highness Caterina...... Is there any command from His Highness Alexander?"

It is not surprising that Baron O'Brien would think so, he is a native of Munster, and he has just arrived in Dweide, so many things are naturally unclear, including the conflict between Jericho and his son, and the fact that Caterina has left the Tiamat Palace.

Of course, Swain would not answer the baron's question directly, he deliberately misunderstood Baron O'Brien, otherwise, just by the name of an eldest princess, there was no way to make the baron do what they wanted.

"In this world, the most trustworthy people are relatives, and for a family, some words don't have to be said directly. You're from a big family like O'Brien, so you can understand this sentence very well, right?"

I understand what you mean, but you don't seem qualified to say this, do you? Baron O'Brien sneered in his heart, Swain was still saying that the head of the Jericho family had nothing to do with Ernest, and it was naturally unconvincing to say such a thing now. However, the purpose of the conversation between nobles is not to win the trust of each other, and some meanings only need to be understood, and saying them will only make everyone look bad.

And Baron O'Brien thought he understood what Swain meant, but in fact, he was deceived by Swain's vague words, he completely thought that Swain was speaking for Alexander, but he didn't expect that the words just now might not actually have any meaning.

"What you said is very reasonable, then, may I ask Her Royal Highness the Princess to let you come, what do you need me to serve?"

"It is a very good virtue for a soldier to obey orders, and it is very admirable that you have followed the arrangements of the War Department and worked tirelessly to come to Germany. Swain seemed to be talking a dumb riddle, and his words only made Baron O'Brien more nervous, "But you should know the situation now, right?"

The baron hesitated for a moment, and replied cautiously: "Just like obedience to orders, soldiers also regard non-participation in politics as a virtue, so I have only heard of the situation of virtue - from the newspapers. ”

"You don't have to be nervous, I'm just a little earl, but I don't have any qualifications to participate in military or government affairs," Swain waved his hand, making Baron O'Brien relax a little, "What I'm going to say is just some personal opinion, it's a military perspective, and it's just mine." ”

Swain's deliberately accentuated voice in the last sentence convinced Baron O'Brien that this was what Alexander meant, which was also a problem with aristocratic thinking.

"Tell me about it, then. ”

"Do you have a map here? a map of the imperial capital. ”

"Yes, please wait. Baron O'Brien stood up, went to the table, took a drawing, and handed it to Swain.

"Look," Swain opened the map and pointed to the location of the Tiamat Palace on the map, "Now, His Royal Highness Alexander is still staying in the Tiamat Palace, and the affairs of the cabinet are also handled in the Tiamat Palace, so this is our most important and inviolable territory, however, the Southern Legion that suddenly entered Deweide a few days ago was divided into two branches, occupying the Imperial Capital Garrison and the Imperial Capital Police Station located in the north and south directions of the Tiamat Palace, and even the Imperial Capital Garrison had to be moved near the station. The Southern Legion has rebelled twice in a row, and their commander, Hekarim Nowitin, is a man who is completely untrustworthy, and it is extremely dangerous for the royal family and the Imperial Government to occupy a key part of the Imperial Capital by such a fellow, do you say?"

Baron O'Brien leaned closer, looking at the location of Swain's finger on the map, his face becoming much more serious. Before coming to the imperial capital, he had only heard that the Southern Army was under the orders of Beria and suddenly entered Deweide, but he didn't expect that the situation had become so tense.

"In this case, the location of Tiamat Palace is very dangerous. He immediately made the judgment of a soldier, "I think His Royal Highness Alexander should leave Tiamat Palace as soon as possible, otherwise if life changes, even if the soldiers of the empire have incomparable loyalty and willingness to fight the enemy, they will be easily held hostage and lose the initiative." ”

"You're right," Swain nodded, "but Tiamat Palace is a symbol of the Empire, and every Emperor has succeeded to the throne in the Imperial Hall since Karin I, so His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can't leave here easily." ”

"Then a trustworthy force should be stationed in Tiamat Palace, ready to defend the royal family. ”

Sven shook his head slowly. "In this way, the impact will be too great, and it will stimulate the nerves of the people in the imperial capital. ”

Baron O'Brien was about to refute immediately, but as soon as he opened his mouth, it immediately occurred to him that what Swain said about the people of the imperial capital might mean something else.

"So, what do you think should be done about it?"

"Of course, in the unlikely event of a very critical moment, of course we will escort His Highness out of the Tiamat Palace. In addition to Tiamat Palace, the imperial capital can best represent the royal position, which is Karin Castle. ”

In fact, there are many royal palaces in Dévide, some of which are older and more historic than Karin Castle. However, Baron O'Brien can also understand why Swain said this, because Karin Castle is the safest, and now the Munster Army, the Yanwan Army, and the Connaught Army are all stationed near Karin Castle, with nearly 20,000 troops, and they are not afraid of the Southern Army at all.

"I see, so what do I need to do?"

Swain hooked his finger and motioned for Baron O'Brien to come over.

"The Empire's army is fully worthy of His Royal Highness's trust, but the question is, who will command it?"

Baron O'Brien was shocked, it stands to reason that these 20,000 people should naturally be commanded by the Minister of War Guderian, but at present, Marshal Rudolph, the elder brother of the Minister Guderian, is leading the empire's hundreds of thousands of troops to pacify the south, if the army of the imperial capital is handed over to Guderian, it will be too unreassuring for the Jean family.

"What do you mean......" Baron O'Brien turned his face slightly, looking cautiously at the Earl, who was much younger than him.

"We believe in the loyalty of all Imperial soldiers, but we have to be careful not to let that loyalty be tarnished by the unscrupulous people who are always talking, don't we?"

Baron O'Brien's heart trembled, and he remembered the conversation he had had with him in Landstown, but unlike that time, this time he was really moved.